Israeli Snipers Murder Two Women Inside of Gaza Church

Because, of course they did

Israeli Snipers Killed Church Goers

While I was writing the previous article on how Israeli soldiers killed three possibly escaped Israeli hostages initially captured by Hamas in cold blood, I learned that Israeli snipers flat-out murdered two women in a Catholic church.

Holy shit.

No pun intended, but, holy shit.

The shooting of a mother and daughter allegedly by an Israeli military sniper in a church compound in Gaza City was a “cold–blooded killing”, the most senior Catholic cleric in England has said.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the archbishop of Westminster, said the shooting did “nothing to further Israel’s right to defend itself”.

The two women were killed inside the Holy Family parish in Gaza City on Saturday, according to the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Most of Gaza’s Christian families have taken refuge in the compound since the start of the war.

Nahida Khalil Anton and her daughter Samar were shot as they walked to the sister’s convent, the patriarchate said. One was killed as she tried to carry the other to safety. ~ The Guardian, December 2023

Needless to say, I have words.

The Professional Essence of a Sniper

Question: what is one word you can think of that defines a sniper? Just one word.

If you ask me, the first word that comes to mind is precision.

You see, in warfare, there’s space for error. That’s space for the accidental killing of unintended targets. Most of this error comes from the inability to accurately confirm the target. Additionally, more error comes from weapon systems that have a measure of splash damage (i.e., grenades, rockets, bombs). A missile, rocket, or bomb from an airstrike has a lot of room for error. A bullet doesn’t have much room for error. A bullet from a sniper? There’s minimal to no space for error.

A sniper is an actual person on ground who, depending on circumstances, has a great amount of opportunity to confirm the target as a true threat to his peers, tactical, strategic, or national security. In light of that fact, a sniper typically isn’t using a weapon system that has splash damage; a bullet generally has one person as its final destination. Let’s also point out that a sniper can positively confirm facilities that are off-limits to combat operations based on the rules of land warfare and conflict.

Therefore, there’s no excuse for Israeli snipers killing a woman and child in a church.

Overall

“This morning Israeli snipers shot and killed my two family friends in an attack on the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza. Nahida (Um Emad Anton) and Samar, mother and daughter, were walking to the Sisters’ Convent to use the only bathroom. One was killed as she tried to carry the other to safety. Their bodies remain strewn across the church courtyard. The water tanks and solar panels were also struck. We don’t know if they have enough water to survive.

The Christian community in Gaza is on the verge of extinction. There are about 800 of us left, some sheltering in the Catholic church, some in the Orthodox church, and a few still in their homes in Gaza City. There are approximately 530 Christians inside the Holy Family, 60 per cent are women and children. My family has been sheltered there since St. Porphyrius Orthodox Church was bombed and my cousin was murdered.

This is a targeted death campaign during the Christmas season on the world’s oldest Christian community.” ~ Hammam Farah, Twitter (I’m not calling it X)

Nahida Khalil Anton and her daughter Samar were murdered by Israeli snipers while being on Catholic Church grounds. Seven others were injured during the shooting. No warning was given, and no notification was provided prior to the shooting spree. There were no combatives within the church grounds.

Currently, many of the churchgoers express fear for their lives.

Hammam Farah, feels that the Christian community within Gaza is on the brink of extinction. With many of the most devout taking refuge in Gaza’s churches, they fear being killed by Israel’s bombs. And snipers.

While I understand the destructive force of bombs and how unintended targets get hit, I hold no excuse for the Israeli military, for as an American military veteran I know precisely how well the Israeli military can mirror the American military’s accuracy and precision; they just choose not to. If I don’t allow excuses for Israel’s bombs and airstrikes, I damn sure don’t allow excuses for a sniper.

I get it — it’s possible that the Israeli soldier who “sniped” the woman and child wasn’t a classically trained sniper. I’ll allow that thought. But, the effect is still the same. The end result is still the same. Maybe they shouldn’t be on the battlefield.

If they aren’t good enough to accurately confirm legitimate threats with their own eyes, but are skilled enough to accurately shoot to kill people, something is wrong. There’s a failure in the system somewhere.

But, based on what Palestinians have been saying, the system of the Israeli Occupational Forces isn’t broken. It’s working as intended. IDF kills Palestinians indiscriminately. It doesn’t matter whether they are Muslim or Christian; what defines IDF’s targets are “not Israelis.”

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